Most of us who dwell here live in a world where the infrastructure is digital. Need to build a bigger thing? Just upgrade your instance or scale your cluster. Need stronger tools? Just find it and read the manual.
For artists and designers working in the physical space it's not that easy.
Got a commission for a large public sculpture that won't even fit in the door to your studio? Spend all the money you earn on it to rent a commercial space. Need welding machines, casting oven or a ten meter textile printing table? Contract it out and loose creative control.
The ability to share resources and tools is essential for the creative professions and the fact that their purpose is highlighted in this article is a positive sign.
Spaces like these are not guilds which restrict supply or inflate the price. They are more like docker containers which allow complicated infrastructures to be run and built on you local physical infrastructure.